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November 2012 Moms
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Hand Foot & Mouth or Folliculitis

winecastle14winecastle14 member
in November 2012 Moms
O has a low fever and sores on her bottom that just appeared last night. She also has a low grade fever. Had DH take her to the Dr this morning which was a big mistake because he couldn't tell me a damn thing the doctor said. MEN! Ugh. So I called the Dr's office and they said the Dr thinks it is Folliculitis and prescribed a topical cream and an antibiotic. I don't like giving antibiotics unnecessarily so I questioned this. I was leery of the diagnosis because they also thought it might be strep because they noticed a white patch on her throat. Strep test was negative.

When I called the DC to let them know she wouldn't be in, I asked if any other child had been sick in her class. to which the director replied "actually, we just learned this morning that one of the other children in her class has Hand Foot & Mouth." Sigh. 

I looked up the symptoms and it seems to me that's what's wrong with her. When I finally got to speak with the doctor and not the nurse she said that she didn't notice any sores in her mouth. Um, well obviously she saw SOMETHING in her mouth because she tested for strep. Anyway the conversation ended with watching her over the next few days for a rash that develops on her hands and feet. She said I could wait a couple of days to give antibiotics and just use the prescription cream. Said if it got worse or didn't improve after 3 days then to give her the antibiotics. And then obviously if she develops further symptoms of HFM then we'll know that's what it is. And that is viral so no antibiotics needed. 

We're playing the waiting game, which sucks. She hasn't slept well this week and has seemed like she just didn't feel well and couldn't get comfortable at night. At least the silver lining is that something IS wrong with her and it's not her new normal for sleep habits. I'm a little irritated that antibiotics were pushed even after letting them know that we didn't want to give them to her unless it was absolutely necessary. Folliculitis doesn't always need antibiotics from what I've been reading. Why couldn't they have just told me in the first place to watch her for a few days and THEN if it didn't improve start the meds. 

Anyone want to play MD and tell me what you think it is? Or anyone have any experience with HFM or Folliculitis? Would love to hear of any home remedies for Folliculitis. I plan to do goat's milk soap and breast milk for starters to see if that helps. Going to look into other options as well, just haven't had time to research this morning. 
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Re: Hand Foot & Mouth or Folliculitis

  • tngrl3tngrl3 member
    With HFM, the lesions are typically on those locations, hence the name. They can be on the trunk as well but typically only in a bad case. I work in a peds ER as a PA and we saw a ton of it this year. You can google images of it. Some folliculitis is self limiting but it can also be MRSA or turn into an abscess. I personally am not big on giving my little one unnecessary medications. However if it concerned you enough to go to the doctor I would either trust the docs opinion or get a second opinion. If it were me I would watch it for a day and then make a decision about treatment. I think the BM on the rash is a good idea.
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  • atrinh11atrinh11 member

    Not sure I can help much, but my LO did get HF&M in early July.

    One of his symptoms was that his voice sounded slightly raspy. Not terrible, just didn't sound quite like himself. It turned out that was from the sores in his mouth/throat. Have you noticed any change in her voice, or in her eating habits? My LO was also not as interested in eating as he normally is. He ate enough, but just not his normal amounts.

    My LO didn't get a terrible rash from it, but you could just barely see some of the spots on his hands and feet. The bulk of it was the fever and sores in the mouth/throat. His fever lasted less than two days, and his throat seemed to feel better after three or four days. We kept him out of day care for a week.

    I don't know if I have any specifc advice, but I thought hearing about some of our symptoms might help. Good luck.

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  • winecastle14winecastle14 member
    Thanks for the responses everyone. Looks like we are definitely dealing with HFM because I've seen a few bumps around her lips, on her fingers and legs. Doesn't really look like a rash but just a couple of red bumps. She had a 102 fever today but it broke with Motrin. She did get some good naps in today, which makes me feel good because she couldn't get comfortable enough to sleep well last night.
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  • shaunnnashaunnna member
    When DS was around 4 months old, we thought he had somehow gotten HFM when he started to get little white bumps on his lips.

    We were fully expecting this diagnosis when FI took DS to the pedi. Turns out he had thrush.

    He had a low temp on top of the bumps also...
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